Fast Food Restaurants & Nutrition Facts Compared

Fast food is bad food. That's pretty much common knowledge these days. The majority of the foods served at fast food restaurants contain an insane amount of calories, tons of fat (including the very evil trans fat), and are high in pretty much everything else that you'd want your food to be low in. Long story short, it's the kind of food you want to avoid eating.

But, you probably know this already. The funny thing is, most of the world doesn't seem to care. The fast food restaurants continue to do just fine because people continue to eat their unhealthy food. So I figured, if you are still going to eat this junk, you might as well at least know which is the best of the worst, and which is the worst of the worst.

To show this, I've compared the nutrition facts of the most popular foods from over 20 popular fast food restaurants to see how each restaurant's version of the same food stacks up against the others. If this isn't enough to convince you to eat less (or none) of this stuff, it will at least give you the information you need to make the better choice and avoid making the worst one. Enjoy...

*NOTE #1* The tables below are sortable. Clicking a category (calories, fat, trans fat, etc.) will sort the data in that column from lowest to highest. Clicking it again will sort it from highest to lowest.

*NOTE #2* Any questions you may have about anything you see in this fast food comparison is most likely answered at the bottom of this very page or in the "Notes" of each comparison. Be sure to check it out for clarifications on anything that may seem unclear.

French Fries (Large) Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

McDonald's

Regular

170

570

30

6

8

70

330

Burger King

Regular

160

500

28

6

6

57

820

Burger King

Salt Not Added

160

500

28

6

6

57

530

Wendy's

Regular

Unknown

540

26

4

1

69

550

Arby's

Homestyle

213

566

37

7

1

82

1029

Arby's

Curly

198

631

37

7

1

73

1476

Hardee's

Regular

193

610

28

6

Unknown

78

370

Hardee's

Crispy Curls

153

480

23

6

Unknown

60

1190

A&W

Regular

156

430

18

4.5

5.5

61

640

A&W

Chili

170

370

16

4.5

6

49

780

A&W

Cheese

170

380

19

5

4

50

870

A&W

Chili Cheese

198

400

19

5

4

51

990

In-N-Out Burger**

Regular**

125**

400**

18**

5**

0**

54**

245**

Jack In The Box

Natural Cut

236

640

33

8

10

77

1180

Jack In The Box

Seasoned Curly

170

550

31

6

10

60

1200

White Castle

Regular

244

700

34

6

11

89

560

Sonic

Regular

98

280

11

2

0

42

135

Sonic

Cheese

125

380

19

7

0

44

600

Sonic

Chili/Cheese

186

450

25

9

0.5

48

610

Dairy Queen

Regular

280

730

33

6

5

100

1530

KFC*

Potato Wedges*

102*

260*

13*

2.5*

0*

33*

740*

Carl's Jr.

Regular

198

620

29

6

Unknown

80

380

Popeyes**

Regular**

88**

310**

17**

7**

1**

35**

660**

Del Taco

Regular

198

490

32

5

Unknown

47

380

* KFC does not have any "french fries." They do have "potato wedges" which is somewhat close, so I included this information above for comparison purposes. However, I did not take it into account when showing the best/worst since they are technically not "french fries."

** In-N-Out Burger and Popeyes had one item listed as just "French Fries." No actual size (large, small, etc.) was given. Therefore, they were also not taken into account when showing the best/worst french fries.

Best:Sonic (regular)Sonic's basic french fries are my pick for the best of this comparison. It's not hard to see why either. Due to having the smallest serving size of all of the other fast food restaurants, their large fries ended up being the lowest in every single one of the compared nutrition facts. Not to mention, with 0 grams of trans fat, it was one of just two large french fries that contained 0 grams. The other? Another one from Sonic... this time their cheese fries.

Worst:Dairy Queen (regular) & White Castle (regular)It was hard to pick an official worst choice here, as there was a lot of trans fat being thrown around. In the end, I went with Dairy Queen's basic fries for being the highest in calories (seriously, 730 calorie fries? Yikes.) and sodium. White Castle's basic fries were also picked here not so much for calories (although at 700, it was right up there in second place) but because of it containing more trans fat (11 evil grams) than any of the others. Of all of the items being compared in this entire comparison, french fries are easily one of the worst all around trans fat offenders.

Notes: For this comparison, I tried to use each fast food restaurant's "Large" french fries. In two cases however, there was no "large" version. So, I instead used whatever that restaurant's largest size was. For White Castle it was "Sack," and for Del Taco it was "Medium."

Hamburgers Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

McDonald's

Regular

100

250

9

3.5

0.5

31

520

Burger King

Regular

121

290

12

4.5

0

30

560

Wendy's

Jr. Hamburger

Unknown

230

8

3

0

26

500

Hardee's

Regular

118

310

12

4

Unknown

36

560

Carl's Jr

Big Hamburger

209

470

17

6

Unknown

54

1060

Sonic

Jr. Burger

117

310

15

5

0.5

30

610

White Castle

Regular

58

140

7

2.5

0.5

14

210

Dairy Queen

Homestyle Burger

140

350

14

7

0.5

33

400

Jack in the Box

Regular

118

310

14

6

1

30

600

In-N-Out Burger

Regular

243

390

19

5

0

39

650

Best:White Castle (regular) & Wendy's (Jr. Hamburger)This one should come as no surprise to anyone who has ever seen a White Castle hamburger. They are tiny. And, when it comes to making the least-bad fast food choice, tiny = good. Due to the below average serving size, all but one of its nutrition facts were the lowest in this comparison. The one that wasn't? Trans fat. You'd think with a burger that size they would be able to pull off 0 trans fat per serving. Apparently not. Wendy's Jr. Hamburger on the other hand does pull it off, and combined with being the second lowest in nearly all of the other nutrition facts, they certainly end up as one of the better basic fast food hamburgers.

Worst:Carl's Jr (Big Hamburger)While the nutrition facts of each fast food restaurant's most basic hamburger were somewhat similar in some cases, the "Big Hamburger" from Carl's Jr is my pick for the worst in this comparison simply based on being the highest in calories and sodium.

Notes: For this comparison I used each restaurant's most basic hamburger. If the restaurant did not have anything simply called "Hamburger," I went with their next most similar and comparable product instead. For Wendy's, I used their "Jr. Hamburger." For Carl's Jr, I used their "Big Hamburger." For Sonic I used their "Jr. Burger." And for Dairy Queen, I used their "Homestyle Burger."

Sandwiches/Hamburgers Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

McDonald's

Quarter Pounder

169

410

19

7

1

37

730

McDonald's

Quarter Pounder (cheese)

198

510

26

12

1.5

40

1190

McDonald's

Double Quarter Pounder (cheese)

279

740

42

19

2.5

40

1380

McDonald's

Big Mac

214

540

29

10

1.5

43

1040

McDonald's

Double Cheeseburger

165

440

23

11

1.5

34

1150

McDonald's

Big N' Tasty

206

460

24

8

1.5

37

720

McDonald's

Big N' Tasty (cheese)

220

510

28

11

1.5

38

960

Burger King

Whopper

290

670

39

11

1.5

51

1020

Burger King

Whopper (cheese)

315

760

47

16

1.5

52

1450

Burger King

Double Whopper

373

900

57

19

2

51

1090

Burger King

Double Whopper (cheese)

398

990

64

24

2.5

52

1520

Burger King

Triple Whopper

456

1130

74

27

3

51

1160

Burger King

Triple Whopper (cheese)

480

1230

82

32

3.5

52

1590

Burger King

Whopper Jr.

158

370

21

6

0.5

31

570

Burger King

Whopper Jr. (cheese)

170

410

24

8

1

32

780

Burger King

Double Hamburger

164

410

21

9

1

30

600

Burger King

Double Stacker

190

610

39

16

1.5

32

1100

Burger King

Triple Stacker

250

800

54

23

2

33

1450

Burger King

Quad Stacker

311

1000

68

30

3

34

1800

Burger King

Double Cheeseburger

189

500

29

14

1.5

31

1030

Wendy's

Single

Unknown

430

20

7

1

37

900

Wendy's

Double (cheese)

Unknown

700

40

16

2.5

38

1500

Wendy's

Triple (cheese)

Unknown

980

59

25

3.5

38

2090

Wendy's

Baconator

Unknown

830

51

22

2.5

35

1920

Hardee's

Thickburger

349

910

64

21

Unknown

53

1560

Hardee's

Cheeseburger

254

680

39

19

Unknown

52

1450

Hardee's

Mushroom N' Swiss Thickburger

276

720

42

21

Unknown

48

1570

Hardee's

Bacon Cheese Thickburger

334

910

64

24

Unknown

50

1550

Hardee's

Low Carb Thickburger

245

420

32

12

Unknown

5

1010

Hardee's

Six Dollar Burger

412

1060

73

28

Unknown

58

1950

Hardee's

Grilled Sourdough Thickburger

381

1030

77

28

Unknown

42

1910

Hardee's

Double Thickburger

471

1250

90

35

Unknown

54

2160

Hardee's

Double Bacon Cheese Thickburger

463

1300

97

38

Unknown

50

2200

Hardee's

Monster Thickburger

413

1420

108

43

Unknown

46

2770

Hardee's

Double Cheeseburger

186

510

26

5

Unknown

38

1120

Hardee's

Double Hamburger

161

420

19

5

Unknown

37

670

A&W

Papa Burger

288

720

42

15

4

46

1390

A&W

Bacon Double Cheeseburger

303

800

48

17

4

47

1610

A&W

Double Cheeseburger

288

720

42

15

4

46

1370

A&W

Bacon Cheeseburger

223

570

33

10

3.5

41

1200

In-N-Out Burger

Double-Double

330

670

41

18

1

39

1440

Jack in the Box

Bacon Ultimate Cheeseburger

338

1090

77

30

3

53

2040

Jack in the Box

Bacon n' Cheese Ciabatta Burger

395

1120

76

28

3

66

1670

Jack in the Box

Jumbo Jack

261

600

35

12

1.5

51

940

Jack in the Box

Jumbo Jack (cheese)

286

690

42

16

1.5

54

1310

Jack in the Box

Junior Bacon Cheeseburger

131

430

25

9

1

30

820

Jack in the Box

Single Bacon n' Cheese Ciabatta Burger

308

870

54

18

1.5

66

1550

Jack in the Box

Sirloin Cheeseburger

421

1070

71

25

1.5

61

1850

Jack in the Box

Sirloin Bacon n' Cheese Burger

422

1120

73

24

2.5

63

2620

Jack in the Box

Sourdough Jack

245

710

51

18

3

36

1230

Jack in the Box

Sourdough Ultimate Cheeseburger

291

950

73

29

4.5

36

1360

Jack in the Box

Ultimate Cheeseburger

323

1010

71

28

3

53

1580

White Castle

Bacon Cheeseburger

71

200

11

5

1

15

480

White Castle

Double White Castle

104

250

13

5

1

22

340

White Castle

Double Cheeseburger

118

300

17

8

1.5

23

590

White Castle

Double Jalapeno Cheeseburger

122

320

19

9

1.5

23

680

White Castle

Double Bacon Cheeseburger

130

370

22

10

1.5

23

880

Sonic

Bacon Cheeseburger

279

780

48

16

1.5

57

1300

Sonic

SuperSonic Cheeseburger (mayo)

343

980

64

24

2.5

58

1430

Sonic

Sonic Burger (mayo)

248

650

37

10

1

55

720

Sonic

Sonic Cheeseburger (mayo)

266

720

42

14

1.5

56

1040

Sonic

Dixie Burger

255

660

37

10

1

55

810

Sonic

Dixie Cheeseburger

273

720

42

14

1.5

56

1120

Sonic

California Cheeseburger

266

690

39

13

1.5

57

1060

Sonic

SuperSonic Jalapeno Cheeseburger

313

890

53

22

2.5

56

1600

Sonic

Thousand Island Cheeseburger

266

680

38

13

1.5

58

1130

Sonic

Jalapeno Cheeseburger

215

610

31

12

1.5

53

930

Sonic

Jalapeno Burger

197

550

26

9

1

52

610

Sonic

Green Chili Cheeseburger

287

630

31

12

1.5

56

1070

Sonic

Chili Cheeseburger

226

660

35

14

1.5

56

990

Sonic

Hickory Cheeseburger

236

640

31

12

1.5

61

1170

Sonic

Jr. Double Cheeseburger

190

570

35

16

1.5

33

1290

Dairy Queen

Homestyle Double Cheeseburger

226

640

34

18

1

34

950

Dairy Queen

Homestyle Bacon Double Cheeseburger

245

730

41

21

1

35

1270

Dairy Queen

Ultimate Burger

259

780

48

22

1.5

33

1110

Dairy Queen

1/4 lb FlameThrower GrillBurger

245

780

54

14

3

41

1490

Dairy Queen

1/2 lb FlameThrower GrillBurger

344

1030

73

23

4

41

2020

Dairy Queen

Classic GrillBurger

212

470

23

7

2.5

42

1020

Dairy Queen

Classic GrillBurger (cheese)

231

560

30

11

2.5

42

1160

Dairy Queen

1/2 lb GrillBurger

297

670

37

12

3.5

42

1310

Dairy Queen

1/2 lb GrillBurger (cheese)

330

820

49

19

3.5

47

1510

Dairy Queen

Bacon Cheddar GrillBurger

229

650

37

13

2.5

41

1480

Dairy Queen

Mushroom Swiss GrillBurger

210

630

40

11

3

39

950

Carl's Jr.

Six Dollar Burger

430

1010

68

27

Unknown

60

1980

Carl's Jr.

Western Bacon Six Dollar Burger

382

1130

66

28

Unknown

83

2540

Carl's Jr.

Bacon Cheese Six Dollar Burger

409

1070

76

30

Unknown

50

1910

Carl's Jr.

Double Six Dollar Burger

602

1520

111

47

Unknown

60

2760

Carl's Jr.

Low Carb Six Dollar Burger

267

490

37

15

Unknown

6

1290

Carl's Jr.

Famous Star (cheese)

278

660

39

12

Unknown

53

1260

Carl's Jr.

Super Star (cheese)

385

930

59

21

Unknown

54

1600

Carl's Jr.

Philly Cheesesteak Burger

297

830

55

17

Unknown

52

1510

Carl's Jr.

Western Bacon Cheeseburger

241

710

33

12

Unknown

70

1480

Carl's Jr.

Double Western Bacon Cheeseburger

323

970

52

21

Unknown

71

1820

Carl's Jr.

Jalapeno Burger

286

720

45

8

Unknown

50

1320

Del Taco

Double Del Cheeseburger

202

560

35

12

Unknown

35

960

Del Taco

Bacon Double Del Cheeseburger

212

610

39

14

Unknown

35

1130

Best:Burger King (Whopper Jr.) & White Castle (Bacon Cheeseburger)Just like in the "basic" hamburger comparison, White Castle ends up looking like one of the better "advanced" hamburgers due to being relatively small compared to other fast food restaurant's versions. And, this translates into it being the lowest in most of the nutrition facts shown. Burger King's Whopper Jr. on the other hand is my other pick for a couple of reasons, the first obviously being that it contains the least trans fat out of all of the other similar items compared. Also, at just 370 calories, 6 grams of saturated fat, and 570mg of sodium, it also ranks as one of the lowest in many of the other important areas.

Worst:Carl's Jr. (Double Six Dollar Burger) & Too Many OthersAre you ready for this one? The Double Six Dollar Burger from Carl's Jr. contains an insane 1520 calories. That's not a typo. One sandwich contains more calories than some smaller females need... PER DAY. The 111 grams of fat isn't a typo either. That's more fat in one sandwich than most average sized men need per day. Carl's Jr. unfortunately does not provide the trans fat content of their foods, as I for one would have loved to have seen that number as well. Too bad. I wanted to make a second "worst" pick, but there was just too many to choose from. Obviously anything with any trans fat could make it, as well as the items with a ton of saturated fat. And calories... ha! For starters, how about anything with over 700 calories? Or 800? Or maybe 900? How about the nearly 20 items with over 1000 calories? Yikes.

Notes: For this comparison I used each fast food restaurant's more "advanced" sandwiches/hamburgers. The previous comparison used only the most basic and simple hamburger (1 patty, nothing fancy). This comparison basically compares all of the other hamburger type items that exist. As you can tell, there were a lot of them.

Chicken (Individual Pieces) Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

McDonald's

Chicken McNuggets (6pc)

96

250

15

3

1.5

15

670

McDonald's

Chicken Selects Premium Strips (5pc)

221

630

33

6

4.5

46

1550

Burger King

Chicken Tenders (6pc)

92

250

15

3.5

2.5

16

720

Burger King

Chicken Fries (6pc)

85

260

15

3.5

3

18

650

Wendy's

Chicken Nuggets (5pc)

Unknown

230

15

3

0

12

520

Arby's

Chicken Tenders (5pc)

218

630

31

5

0

47

1977

Arby's

Popcorn Chicken (large)

184

531

26

6

1

39

1666

Hardee's

Chicken Strips (5pc)

241

630

34

6

Unknown

45

2260

Dairy Queen

Chicken Strip Basket (6pc)

531

1270

67

11

12

121

2910

KFC

Popcorn Chicken (large)

160

550

35

6

0

30

1600

Carl's Jr.

Chicken Breast Strips (5pc)

215

710

41

6

Unknown

46

2020

White Castle

Chicken Rings (6pc)

110

340

23

4.5

4

15

670

Best:Wendy's Chicken Nuggets (5pc)This one was as easy to pick as can be. The 5 piece chicken nuggets from Wendy's are, as far as fast food goes, fantastic! From its 0 grams of trans fat, to its only 230 calories, these chicken nuggets have it all. The significantly less saturated fat and sodium are great, too. Nice job, Wendy's.

Worst:Dairy Queen Chicken Strip Basket (6pc)And I thought picking the best item in this comparison was easy. HA! The worst was actually ten times easier. Dairy Queen has somehow managed to turn a 6 piece order of chicken strips into a 1270 calorie meal, more than 1000 calories higher than this category's "best" pick. They then top it off with 12 evil grams of trans fat, and 2910mg of sodium. I do realize that their serving size is larger than that of the other items, but it doesn't change the fact that people can walk into a Dairy Queen and walk out with this craziness as their 6 piece order of chicken strips.

Notes: For this comparison I used each fast food restaurant's version of individual pieces of chicken. This includes nuggets, tenders, rings, popcorn, strips and basically any chicken item that wasn't a sandwich or an actual part of the chicken (such as a whole breast). I also wanted to keep the serving sizes as similar as possible, so I limited this to 5-6 piece items, or, when no amount was given, a "large." Some restaurants only had 2-4 piece items. These items were therefore not included in the above comparison.

Chicken Sandwiches Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

McDonald's

McChicken

147

360

16

3.5

1

40

790

McDonald's

Premium Grilled Chicken Classic

226

420

10

2

0

51

1190

McDonald's

Premium Crispy Chicken Classic

229

500

17

3.5

1.5

61

1330

McDonald's

Premium Grilled Chicken Club

260

570

21

7

0

52

1720

McDonald's

Premium Crispy Chicken Club

263

660

28

8

1.5

63

1860

Burger King

TENDERGRILL (with mayo)

258

510

19

3.5

0.5

49

1180

Burger King

TENDERCRISP

284

790

44

8

4

68

1640

Burger King

Original

219

660

40

8

2.5

52

1440

Burger King

Chick'n Crisp (with mayo)

144

480

31

5

2

36

870

Wendy's

Ultimate Chicken Grill

Unknown

320

7

1.5

0

36

950

Wendy's

Spicy Chicken Fillet

Unknown

440

16

2.5

0

46

1320

Wendy's

Homestyle Chicken Fillet

Unknown

430

16

2.5

0

48

1140

Wendy's

Chicken Club

Unknown

540

25

7

0.5

49

1410

Wendy's

Crispy

Unknown

320

14

2.5

0

34

660

Arby's

Crispy Fillet

238

526

30

5

0

50

901

Arby's

Grilled Fillet

233

414

17

3

0

36

913

Hardee's

Charbroiled Club

277

560

30

8

Unknown

32

1430

Hardee's

Charbroiled BBQ

242

340

4

1

Unknown

40

1070

Hardee's

Low Carb Charbroiled Club

250

370

21

7

Unknown

10

1170

Hardee's

Big Fillet

351

800

37

6

Unknown

76

1890

Hardee's

Spicy

159

470

25

5

Unknown

46

1220

A&W

Grilled

213

440

19

3.5

3

34

860

A&W

Crispy

219

590

29

4.5

4.5

54

1170

Jack In The Box

Regular

145

400

21

4.5

2.5

38

730

Jack In The Box

Jack's Spicy

270

620

31

6

3

61

1100

Jack In The Box

Sourdough Grilled

266

530

28

7

2

34

1430

White Castle

Breast (with cheese)

82

200

8

2.5

1.5

21

720

White Castle

Supreme

88

230

10

3.5

1.5

21

860

Sonic

Club Toaster

257

740

46

11

0.5

55

1740

Dairy Queen

Crispy

198

540

29

5

2.5

47

700

Dairy Queen

Grilled

177

350

16

2.5

0

49

780

KFC

Snacker

119

290

13

2.5

0

29

680

KFC

Honey BBQ Snacker

101

210

3

0.5

0

32

530

KFC

Double Crunch

213

470

23

4.5

0

38

1190

KFC

Crispy Twister

252

550

28

6

0

49

1500

KFC

Oven Roasted Twister

269

420

17

4

0

40

1250

KFC

Tender Roast

236

380

13

3

0

29

1180

KFC

Honey BBQ

147

280

3.5

1

0

40

780

Subway

Oven Roasted

238

310

5

1.5

0

48

830

Carl's Jr.

Charbroiled BBQ

239

360

4.5

1

Unknown

48

1150

Carl's Jr.

Charbroiled Club

264

550

25

7

Unknown

43

1410

Carl's Jr.

Charbroiled Santa Fe

264

610

32

8

Unknown

43

1540

Carl's Jr.

Spicy

213

560

30

6

Unknown

59

1480

Boston Market

Boston Carver

321

700

29

7

0

68

1560

Boston Market

Half Boston Carver

199

340

15

4

0

29

710

Popeyes

Deluxe

265

630

31

8

1

53

1480

Chick-Fil-A

Chicken Sandwich

170

410

16

3.5

0

38

1300

Chick-Fil-A

Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich

193

270

3.5

1

0

33

940

Chick-Fil-A

Chargrilled Chicken Club Sandwich

221

380

11

5

0

33

1240

Chick-Fil-A

Chicken Salad Sandwich

153

350

15

3

0

32

880

Best:KFC (Honey BBQ Snacker)Another very easy pick for me. KFC's Honey BBQ Snacker wins this comparison hands down. The 0 grams of trans fat and only 210 calories combined with it being the lowest in most of the other nutrition facts makes it easily the best fast food chicken sandwich around. Great job, KFC.

Worst:Hardee's (Big Fillet) & Burger King (TENDERCRISP)This was actually a harder one to decide on. In the end though, I had to go with Hardee's Big Fillet because, at 800 calories (highest in the comparison) and 1890mg of sodium (highest again) it towers over most of the other items compared by being literally 2-4 times as high. Hardee's did not provide the trans fat content of their food, but something tells me it would be up there as well. Burger King on the other hand did provide trans fat content, and its TENDERCRISP sandwich contains 4 grams of it. Add that to the fact that it's second highest in pretty much all of the other nutrition facts, and you have your second pick for worst chicken sandwich.

Notes: This comparison includes pretty much every single fast food chicken-related sandwich there is.

Onion Rings Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

Burger King (King Size)

150

500

25

5

4.5

62

720

A&W

113

350

16

3.5

4.5

45

710

Jack In The Box

119

500

30

6

10

51

420

White Castle (Sack)

178

410

20

5

7

53

400

White Castle (Homestyle, Sack)

178

790

44

8

30

91

860

Sonic (Large)

227

640

31

5

0.5

80

300

Dairy Queen (Large)

142

590

37

7

9

56

930

Carl's Jr.

128

430

21

4

Unknown

53

550

Best:A&W, Sonic (Large), or really... NONE.My real pick for best onion rings is none of the above. But, since I am forced to give a pick, I'd have to go with either A&W or Sonic's large order. The nutrition facts of A&W's onion rings look really good until you make your way over to trans fat. 4.5 grams is the opposite of really good. Then you have Sonic's version, which is the lowest in trans fat (0.5 grams) which is great. Not so great though is its 640 calories (second highest). I guess if I really had to make a decision here, the real "best" pick is half an order of Sonic's large onion rings.

Worst:White Castle (Homestyle, Sack)Hmmm, I wonder which onion rings will be the "worst" pick? Oh, I know. How about the reigning and defending champion of my 88 Fast Food Items Highest In Trans Fat list, White Castle's Homestyle sack of trans-fat-rings. 30 insane grams. Is there really any reason to even mention the 790 calories after that? Nope. We can just end it right here.

Notes: For this comparison, I used each fast food restaurant's largest available size of onion rings.

Breakfast Sandwiches/Biscuits/Croissants/Wraps Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

McDonald's

Egg McMuffin

139

300

12

5

0

30

820

McDonald's

Sausage McMuffin

114

370

22

8

0

29

850

McDonald's

Sausage McMuffin (egg)

164

450

27

10

0

30

920

McDonald's

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit (regular)

144

450

25

11

0

36

1360

McDonald's

Sausage Biscuit (egg, regular)

159

500

32

12

0

35

1130

McDonald's

Sausage Biscuit (regular)

113

410

27

10

0

33

1040

McDonald's

Biscuit (regular)

72

250

11

5

0

32

700

McDonald's

Bacon, Egg & Cheese McGriddles

173

460

21

9

0

48

1360

McDonald's

Sausage, Egg & Cheese McGriddles

202

560

32

12

0

48

1360

McDonald's

Sausage McGriddles

141

420

22

8

0

44

1030

Burger King

Croissan'wich Egg & Cheese

115

300

17

6

2

26

740

Burger King

Croissan'wich Sausage & Cheese

106

370

25

9

2

23

810

Burger King

Croissan'wich Sausage, Egg & Cheese

159

470

32

11

2.5

26

1060

Burger King

Croissan'wich Ham, Egg & Cheese

149

340

18

6

2

26

1230

Burger King

Croissan'wich Bacon, Egg & Cheese

122

340

20

7

2

26

890

Burger King

Double Croissan'wich Sausage, Egg & Cheese

215

680

51

18

3

26

1590

Burger King

Double Croissan'wich Bacon, Egg & Cheese

142

430

27

10

2

27

1250

Burger King

Double Croissan'wich Ham, Egg & Cheese

196

420

23

9

2

27

2210

Burger King

Double Croissan'wich Sausage, Bacon, Egg & Cheese

179

550

39

14

2.5

27

1420

Burger King

Double Croissan'wich Ham, Bacon, Egg & Cheese

169

420

24

9

2

27

1600

Burger King

Double Croissan'wich Ham, Sausage, Egg & Cheese

206

550

37

14

2.5

27

2040

Burger King

Enormous Omelet Sandwich

266

730

45

16

1

44

1940

Burger King

Ham Omelet Sandwich

139

330

14

5

0

35

1130

Burger King

Sausage Biscuit

118

390

26

8

5

28

1020

Burger King

Ham, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

156

390

22

7

5

31

1410

Burger King

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

183

530

37

12

6

31

1490

Burger King

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

146

410

25

8

5

31

1320

Hardee's

Egg Biscuit

152

450

51

20

Unknown

35

940

Hardee's

Bacon Biscuit

120

430

28

7

Unknown

35

1110

Hardee's

Sausage Biscuit

142

530

38

10

Unknown

36

1240

Hardee's

Country Ham Biscuit

144

440

26

6

Unknown

36

1710

Hardee's

Breaded Chicken Fillet Biscuit

226

600

34

7

Unknown

50

1680

Hardee's

Breaded Country Steak Biscuit

180

620

41

11

Unknown

44

1360

Hardee's

Breaded Pork Chop Biscuit

222

690

42

8

Unknown

48

1330

Hardee's

Sausage & Egg Biscuit

185

610

44

11

Unknown

36

1290

Hardee's

Country Steak & Egg Biscuit

223

690

47

11

Unknown

44

1800

Hardee's

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

174

560

38

11

Unknown

37

1360

Hardee's

Ham, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

220

560

35

10

Unknown

37

1800

Hardee's

Loaded Omelet Biscuit

198

640

44

14

Unknown

37

1510

Hardee's

Monster Biscuit

212

710

51

17

Unknown

37

2250

Hardee's

Sunrise Croissant (Ham)

164

430

26

10

Unknown

28

1050

Hardee's

Sunrise Croissant (Bacon)

138

450

29

12

Unknown

28

900

Hardee's

Sunrise Croissant (Sausage)

161

550

38

15

Unknown

29

1030

Hardee's

Frisco Breakfast Sandwich

185

420

20

7

Unknown

37

1340

Hardee's

Loaded Breakfast Burrito

258

780

51

20

Unknown

38

1620

Arby's

Bacon & Egg Croissant

120

337

22

10

0

23

651

Arby's

Bacon Biscuit

95

340

21

6

0

29

1028

Arby's

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

158

461

28

8

0

30

1446

Arby's

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Croissant

133

378

22

10

0

23

850

Arby's

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Sourdough

173

437

16

5

0

40

1220

Arby's

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Wrap

193

515

29

8

0.5

50

1367

Arby's

Egg & Cheese Sourdough

164

392

12

3

0

40

1058

Arby's

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

185

557

38

11

0

30

1579

Arby's

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Sourdough

191

514

27

8

0

40

1232

Arby's

Ham & Cheese Croissant

113

274

12

7

0

22

842

Arby's

Ham Biscuit

125

316

17

4

0

29

1240

Arby's

Ham, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

188

437

23

6

0

31

1658

Arby's

Ham, Egg & Cheese Croissant

213

434

24

10

0

25

1282

Arby's

Ham, Egg & Cheese Sourdough

296

679

35

11

0

42

2104

Arby's

Ham, Egg & Cheese Wrap

242

568

31

10

1

51

1929

Arby's

Sausage & Egg Croissant

147

433

32

13

0

23

784

Arby's

Sausage Biscuit

122

436

31

9

0

28

1160

Arby's

Sausage Gravy Biscuit

238

961

68

14

0

107

3755

Arby's

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Croissant

160

475

32

13

0

23

982

Arby's

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Wrap

239

689

45

15

1

50

1849

Jack In The Box

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

149

430

25

8

5

34

1100

Jack In The Box

Bacon Breakfast Jack

113

300

14

5

0.5

29

730

Jack In The Box

Breakfast Jack

125

290

12

4.5

0

29

760

Jack In The Box

Chicken Biscuit

154

450

24

6

6

42

980

Jack In The Box

Ciabatta Breakfast Sandwich

278

710

36

10

1

63

1730

Jack In The Box

Extreme Sausage Sandwich

213

670

48

17

1.5

31

1300

Jack In The Box

Meaty Breakfast Burrito

183

480

29

10

1

29

1210

Jack In The Box

Sausage Biscuit

131

440

29

8

5

32

870

Jack In The Box

Sausage Breakfast Jack

154

450

28

10

1

29

840

Jack In The Box

Sausage Croissant

174

580

39

13

4

37

770

Jack In The Box

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

234

740

55

17

6

35

1430

Jack In The Box

Sirloin Steak & Egg Burrito

289

790

48

15

3.5

52

1320

Jack In The Box

Spicy Chicken Biscuit

169

460

22

5

7

44

1020

Jack In The Box

Supreme Croissant

151

450

25

9

3.5

36

860

Jack In The Box

Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich

249

570

27

10

1

49

1700

Sonic

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Bistro

162

510

30

10

0.5

37

1060

Sonic

Ham, Egg & Cheese Bistro

181

460

24

7

0.5

36

1320

Sonic

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Bistro

189

590

40

13

1

37

1000

Sonic

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Toaster

194

620

42

13

1

40

1380

Sonic

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Toaster

167

530

32

10

0.5

40

1440

Sonic

Ham, Egg & Cheese Toaster

186

490

26

8

0.5

40

1700

Sonic

Sausage, Egg & Cheese Burrito

167

470

30

11

1

38

1140

Sonic

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Burrito

157

450

26

10

0.5

38

1240

Sonic

Ham, Egg & Cheese Burrito

183

440

23

9

0.5

37

1630

Sonic

SuperSonic Breakfast Burrito

216

550

34

12

1.5

47

1340

Subway

Cheese Sandwich

167

400

17

7

0

43

940

Subway

Chipotle Steak & Cheese Sandwich

259

580

31

11

0.5

48

1400

Subway

Double Bacon & Cheese Sandwich

185

500

25

11

0.5

44

1310

Subway

Honey Mustard Ham & Cheese Sandwich

216

460

19

8

0

51

1430

Subway

Western Sandwich (cheese)

207

440

18

8

0

45

1320

Subway

Cheese Wrap

159

390

19

8

0

37

1050

Subway

Chipotle Steak & Cheese Wrap

251

570

33

11

0.5

41

1510

Subway

Double Bacon & Cheese Wrap

177

480

27

11

0

38

1420

Subway

Honey Mustard Ham & Cheese Wrap

208

450

21

8

0

45

1540

Subway

Western Wrap (cheese)

199

420

20

8

0

39

1430

Carl's Jr.

Breakfast Burger

309

830

47

15

Unknown

65

1580

Carl's Jr.

Sourdough Breakfast Sandwich

193

460

21

9

Unknown

39

1050

Carl's Jr.

Sunrise Croissant

172

560

41

15

Unknown

27

970

Carl's Jr.

Bacon & Egg Burrito

208

570

33

11

Unknown

37

990

Carl's Jr.

Loaded Breakfast Burrito

328

820

51

16

Unknown

52

1530

Carl's Jr.

Steak & Egg Burrito

322

660

36

13

Unknown

44

1690

Chick-Fil-A

Chicken Burrito

191

410

16

7

0

42

940

Chick-Fil-A

Sausage Burrito

191

450

23

9

0

39

860

Chick-Fil-A

Chicken, Egg & Cheese (sunflower multi-grain bagel)

215

500

20

7

0

49

1260

Chick-Fil-A

Hot Buttered Biscuit

79

270

12

3

3

38

660

Chick-Fil-A

Chicken Biscuit

145

420

19

4.5

3

44

1270

Chick-Fil-A

Bacon, Egg & Cheese Biscuit

163

470

26

9

3

39

1190

Chick-Fil-A

Sausage & Egg Biscuit

198

570

37

11

3

39

1130

Chick-Fil-A

Biscuit (with gravy)

192

330

15

4

4

43

950

Best:McDonald's Biscuit (regular)This was a tough one, as there were a few good choices. In the end though I have to go with the regular Biscuit from McDonald's based on it being the lowest in calories and among the lowest in all of the other nutrition facts (including 0 grams of trans fat). Really though, any of the breakfast items with 350 or less calories and 0 grams of trans fat could be tied for second best.

Worst:Arby's Sausage Gravy Biscuit & Jack In The Box Spicy Chicken BiscuitArby's Sausage Gravy Biscuit ends up as one of the worst breakfast items based mostly on two of its nutrition facts. First up is its 961 calories which are 250 calories higher than the item that is second highest in calories, and 700 more than this category's "best" pick. As if that wasn't enough, take a look at its 3755mg of sodium... literally 3000mg more than many of the other similar breakfast items. Jack In The Box's Spicy Chicken Biscuit also makes the cut due to its 7 grams of trans fat (highest in the comparison).

Notes: For this comparison I went with pretty much every single sandwich-type breakfast item there was, and there were a TON of them.

Mozzarella Sticks Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

Arby's

4 pc (Regular)

137

426

28

13

1

38

1370

Arby's

8 pc (Large)

273

849

56

26

2

75

2730

Jack In The Box

3 pc

71

240

12

5

2

21

420

Jack In The Box

6 pc

138

483

27

11

4

39

1018

White Castle

3 pc

79.2

250

14

6

2

22

750

White Castle

5 pc

132

420

23

10

3

37

1240

White Castle

10 pc

264

820

46

20

6

73

2490

Sonic

Unknown

140

440

22

9

0.5

40

1050

Best:SonicThis was pretty tough, but in the end I had to go with lack of trans fat over lack of calories. Sonic's mozzarella sticks contain 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving and in this comparison, that's as good as it's going to get.

Worst:Arby's 8 pc (Large) & White Castle 10 pcA large (8 piece) order of mozzarella sticks from Arby's packs a pretty insane 849 calories, 26 grams of saturated fat and 2730mg of sodium. Let's also not forget the 2 grams of trans fat. Pretty crazy for just an appetizer. White Castle's 10 piece version is a close second in all of those nutrition facts except one, trans fat, where it ranks the highest with 6 grams.

Notes: For this comparison, since there were so few fast food restaurants offering mozzarella sticks, I decided to compare all of the available sizes from the restaurants that did sell them rather than just one specific size.

Breadsticks, Cheesy Bread, Cheese Breadsticks Compared

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

Pizza Hut

Breadsticks

1 pc

150

6

1

0

20

230

Pizza Hut

Cheese Breadsticks

1 pc

200

10

3

0

21

370

Domino's Pizza

Breadsticks

1 pc

130

7

1.5

0

14

90

Domino's Pizza

Cheesy Bread

1 pc

140

7

2.3

0

14

140

Little Caesars

Crazy Bread

1 pc

100

3

0.5

0

15

150

Little Caesars

Italian Cheese Bread

1 pc

130

7

2.5

0

13

230

Little Caesars

Pepperoni Cheese Bread

1 pc

150

8

3

0

13

280

Papa John's

Breadsticks

1 pc

140

2

0

0

26

260

Papa John's

Cheesesticks

2 pc

370

16

4.5

0

42

830

Best:Little Caesars (Crazy Bread)This was another hard one to pick a "best" for because the nutrition facts do not differ that much among the foods. In a case like this, I'd have to go with the food lowest in calories. In this comparison that title goes to Little Caesars Crazy Bread with 100 calories per piece. However, with all of the items compared above containing 0 grams of trans fat, no real significant amount of saturated fat (at least by fast food standards) and being somewhat close in calories, they pretty much all qualify as being this comparison's "best."

Worst:Papa John's (Cheesesticks)This one is kind of silly. I have no idea why Papa John's Cheesesticks are the only item with a serving size of 2 pieces (the others were all 1 piece) but since I'm making my best/worst picks based on the nutrition facts per serving, I guess I kind of have to go with these. The obvious reason why is that with double the serving, you're eating double the calories, fat, sodium, and other nutrients. Like I said, silly.

Notes: For this comparison I used each fast food restaurant's version a bread stick, with and/or without cheese. Papa John's "Cheesesticks" were the only item whose serving size wasn't 1 piece (it was 2 pieces) and while that kind of throws things off a bit in this comparison, I included it anyway. Another thing to keep in mind about the serving sizes is that all of these items come in orders ranging from 7-10 pieces. So, if you're eating the whole order, you're eating the above nutrition facts multiplied by 7-10.

"14 Inch Large Cheese Pizza" Compared (1 slice, no toppings)

Fast Food Restaurant

Type

Serving Size (g)

Calories

Total Fat (g)

Saturated Fat (g)

Trans Fat (g)

Carbs (g)

Sodium (mg)

Pizza Hut

14" Large Pan Pizza

146

390

19

7

0

38

800

Domino's Pizza

14" Classic Hand-Tossed

121

290

9

3.5

0

42

470

Papa John's

14" Original Crust Pizza

132

300

11

3.5

0

39

750

Little Caesars

14" Round HOT-N-READY Pizza

94

200

7

3.5

0

25

340

Best:Little Caesars (14" Round HOT-N-READY Pizza)Little Caesars looks like the winner of this one based mostly on its smaller serving size and therefore lower nutrition facts. Honorable mentions to all of the fast food pizza restaurants compared for containing 0 grams of trans fat.

Worst:Pizza Hut (14" Large Pan Pizza)With the largest serving size of them all, Pizza Hut appears to be the worst in this comparison, as it is the highest in all of the most important nutrition facts (calories, saturated fat, sodium). However I will add that when you compare any of these items with any of the other items already compared above, pizza really isn't even in the same league.

Notes: For this comparison I used each pizza restaurant's most basic 14 inch cheese pizza.

Fast Food Comparison FAQ

Just in case anything in the above comparison was a little unclear, here is a quick Q&A that will hopefully clear it all up and answer any questions you may have had.

How many calories should a person eat per day? How much fat? How much saturated fat? How much trans fat? How much sodium?

Calories: It depends. But, here's how to figure it out...
Daily calorie intake recommendations depend on many factors. Age, height, weight, gender, metabolism and of course, goals. For example, are you trying to lose weight, gain weight, or just maintain your current weight? Luckily though I have already put something together for occasions just like this. So, for all of your calorie and weight related questions, check out the Guide To Calories And Weight Control. It will explain everything.

Fat: 20%-30% of your total calorie intake.
Recommendations for daily fat intake typically fall in the range of 20%-30% of your total calorie intake. So, if an example person eats 2000 calories per day, 20-30 percent of that would be 400-600 calories. And, since 1 gram of fat contains 9 calories, this works out to be about 44-66 grams of fat per day for this example person. Of course, most of this fat should be coming from healthy sources (like nuts, fish, and olive oil for example) rather than junky sources (like fast food, for example).

Saturated Fat: Maximum of 7% of total calorie intake.
Besides the above amount, another recommendation I've heard for daily saturated fat intake is a maximum of 1/3 of your total fat intake. They both actually end up fairly close to each other. Either way, the answer ends up translating into "not much at all." Saturated fat may not be quite as terrible as trans fat, but it's a not-too-distant second. Speaking of which...

Trans Fat: 0 grams per day.
As I already mentioned in the Fast Food Items Highest In Trans Fat article, The American Heart Association recommends a MAXIMUM of no more than 2 grams of trans fat per day. They then go on to say that there is enough naturally occurring trans fats in some meat and dairy products that most people already reach this maximum 2 grams without the additional consumption of the industrially manufactured trans fats contained in the foods mentioned in the above comparison. So, when you take this intake account (and realize 2 grams is the MAX amount, not recommended average amount) you should really be eating 0 grams of trans fat per day.

Sodium: 2500mg maximum per day.
Recommendations for sodium intake are usually in the range of 1000mg - 3000mg per day, with 2500mg being a fairly common maximum recommendation for the average healthy adult.

What this all means...
Basically, you could walk into one of the fast food restaurants mentioned above, make a very normal, very typical fast food order, and easily leave having met or greatly exceeded every single daily total recommendation in just one single meal. And also bare in mind that the nutritional recommendations you'd be exceeding aren't for something like Vitamin C. They're for ALL of the really bad, really unhealthy things.

What's the deal with carbs? Were they listed above because they are as bad as the other nutrients?

The only reason carbs were one of the included nutrition facts for this comparison is that people are so obsessed with them that I knew I had to include them just to avoid getting emails from people requesting that carbs be added. It was sort of an email-prevention-method on my part. Here's the thing, carbs are not bad. Generally speaking, there's really just two things you should know. Some carbs are pretty junky (simple carbs like sugar and processed foods) and should be avoided, while others (complex carbs like whole grains, oatmeal, brown rice, beans, fruits, vegetables, etc.) are perfectly fine and should comprise most (if not all) of your carb intake. That's it. End the carb insanity.

Why did you decide to only compare these specific fast food items? Are you taking suggestions for others?

You bet I am! The types of foods compared (fries, hamburgers, breakfast sandwiches, chicken sandwiches, etc.) were all picked because they were the first bunch of fast food items that popped into my head when I was coming up with what to compare. They are, to me at least, the most popular stuff. However, I am aware that I may have neglected to compare other really popular foods. So, if you happen to know of a similar type of food that is sold at 2 or more fast food restaurants and would like to see it all compared side-by-side like the above items were, just leave a comment and suggest it. I won't make any promises, but I will try to get it done and added to this page as soon as I can.

When did you put this thing together and when was it last updated? Is the nutrition info current?

This whole thing was put together in November 2007. At that time, all of the nutrition facts used (calories, fat, etc.) were completely up to date and accurate. Whether or not everything is still completely up to date and accurate is tough to say, as this took forever to create and would take forever to recheck.

If I had to guess though, I'd say the only real differences I could see having been made since November 2007 would probably be trans fat related (as it was beginning to be banned around that time). But stuff like calories, saturated fat and sodium probably haven't changed much, if at all, and I don't really see them changing much in the future either. A 1500 calorie burger won't suddenly become a 500 calorie burger any time soon.

However, to ensure that the nutritional information you see is still 100% accurate and up to date, I'd recommend checking out the web site of each fast food restaurant.

I found this comparison useful. Do you have any other similar fast food content on this site?